Tom May, 67, visits the grave of his brother Robert at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City Monday on Memorial Day with Isabelle LaPorta, 65, and their dog Luca.
Monday, May 31, 2010 | 8:35 p.m.
Map of Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery
About 20,000 small American flags marked the burial plots of veterans at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery on Monday for Memorial Day.
Residents walked through rows of plots to find their loved ones and placed fresh flowers next to the flags. Tom May, 67, sat on the grass next to his brother’s grave with his fiancée, Isabelle LaPorta, and their dog Luca.
“We come here every year,” LaPorta said. “It’s very moving and inspirational.”
Tom’s brother Robert was an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam. He died in 1996 of heart failure at the age of 57. He wasn’t enlisted in the military at the time of his death, but Tom and Isabelle said they visit the site to remember his service to the country.
Nevada’s congressional delegation spent the day at the cemetery to remember veterans and active troops during the annual Memorial Day ceremony in Boulder City.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid addressed the crowd by saying that five Nevada soldiers were killed in the past year. He said troops often have anonymity when they enlist in the military because of wearing similar uniforms and hairstyles, but Memorial Day is a time to remember them as individuals.
“They’re not faceless; they’re not nameless,” Reid said.
Sen. John Ensign said Memorial Day signifies freedom. He said he recently returned from a trip to Afghanistan and Pakistan, where he spoke to troops about their struggles in the war on terrorism.
Odila Martinez, 74, said she was amazed by how many families attended the ceremony to remember loved ones. She said she paid tribute to her grandson Larry Mossalli, who was killed in a 2001 vehicle accident in Italy while serving in the U.S. Army.
“We raised him and came out to honor him,” she said.
Rep. Shelley Berkley said she spent Memorial Day weekend with her father – a Navy veteran. As her family gathered for Sunday night dinner, Berkley said, she stepped away from the table and took a moment to recognize fallen veterans.
“My family is so lucky that my dad came home when many others didn’t,” Berkley said. “We should be honoring veterans 365 days a year.”
Residents stroll across the Walk of Life at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City on Monday to honor veterans on Memorial Day.
Other speakers included Boulder City Mayor Roger Tobler, Rep. Dina Titus and Gov. Jim Gibbons.
The ceremony came to a close with performances by the Nevada Opera Theatre Chorus and the Myron Heaton Chorale. Local musician Phil Esser played “God Bless America.”
Following a rendition of taps, families left the chapel and strolled over to the cemetery’s Walk of Life, glancing down at the engraved names of deceased veterans.
Chris Naylor, superintendent of the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery, said one family recently decided to walk around the cemetery and honor each veteran’s service.
A father and his three sons went to each headstone, each time stopping and saying “thank you for serving.”
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